Varieties of cabbage, description of the main subspecies of cabbage, the best varieties
Cabbage - a vegetable that has been present in the human diet since very ancient times. The variety of cabbage that is grown both in personal gardens and on an industrial scale does not end with the varieties of the usual white cabbage. Let's try to understand some of them.
Content:
- Cabbage and Savoy cabbage
- Cauliflower and broccoli
- Subspecies of cabbage. Kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts and Beijing sprouts
Cabbage and Savoy cabbage
The most common type grown in gardens is cabbage. The species belongs to the genus Cabbage from the Cruciferous family. The most common variety is cabbage. Cabbage is grown for its dense, compact head. Botanists classify the head of cabbage or forks as a type of bud.
To be precise, a head of cabbage is an apical bud that is located at the top of the shoot. This bud - the head of cabbage - consists of many leaves, which are located on a modified stem - the stump. The stump is a hard shortened shoot, it is located inside the head of cabbage (fork).
Cabbage is grown as a biennial crop. In the first year, a fork of petioled leaves is formed, which sit tightly on the stem - the stalk. Flowers producing seeds appear in the second year. Growing cabbage production for seeds involves the use of special technologies.
Cabbage can be divided into two varieties:
- cabbage white
- red cabbage
These varieties differ in leaf color. They are given color by colored plant glycosides - anthocyanins. It is anthocyanins that give red cabbage a specific and somewhat bitter taste. White cabbage varieties, from a culinary point of view, are more versatile. Red cabbage, in principle, can be used in the same dishes as white cabbage, but during heat treatment it loses its bright color, but coloring other products.
At the same time, it gives them a not always appetizing pale purple color. Therefore, it is more convenient to use red cabbage in fresh salads, especially considering that some of its varieties tolerate long-term fresh storage very well. The following varieties can be recommended for cultivation on personal farmsteads:
cabbage whites:
- June, early variety
- Cossack F 1, early hybrid
- Zarya, very early variety
- Slava 1305, medium grade
- Caporal F 1, mid-season hybrid
- Moscow late, mid-late variety
red cabbage varieties:
- Calibos
- Mars
- Ruby
- Firebird
- Juno
Cabbage Savoyard Although it forms forks, its leaves do not have hard petioles and veins. The leaf is corrugated, with soft, vesicular veins; the leaves themselves do not have rough petioles and veins, therefore it is classified as a different subspecies of garden cabbage than white and red cabbage. The leaves of Savoy cabbage can be either green, bluish-green, or colored in different shades of yellow.
All varieties and varieties of cabbage and savoy cabbage are grown both through seeding and sowing in open ground.
Cauliflower and broccoli
Cauliflower and broccoli are popular varieties of garden cabbage.They differ in that they have a one-year development cycle. They are popular as dietary varieties, with a pleasant taste, rich vitamin composition, and low calorie content. Cauliflower, together with Romanesco cabbage, is a head, flat or round in shape, consisting of flowering shoots.
The color of the head and surrounding leaves may vary, depending on the presence of dyes in the tissues of the plant. Subsequently, the head grows, forming shoots with flowers, in place of which seeds ripen. A characteristic feature of many varieties of cauliflower is the extended harvest period, which can exceed a calendar month.
The best varieties of cauliflower include:
- Snow globe, distinguished by heads whose weight reaches 1 kg, early
- Movir 74, a hybrid, allows you to grow and harvest two crops per season. early
- White beauty, has good taste and keeping quality, medium
- Amerigo F1, one of the most productive late hybrids
- Cortes F1, heads weigh up to 3 kg, late hybrid
Broccoli
Genetically it is the ancestor and close relative of cauliflower. It is believed that the birthplace of this type of cabbage is Italy. Translated from Italian broccoli means flowering branch or flowering stem. For many centuries this species was grown only in Italy and was not known in other places. From Italy cabbage came to England, and from England to the USA, where it successfully took root in the state of California, where it is still grown in huge quantities.
The second name for broccoli is asparagus cabbage; there is also a species called calabrese, which is distinguished by a dense, hard head.Just like cauliflower, the inflorescences that have not yet opened form the head.
When eaten, they are disassembled into fragments consisting of several inflorescences. Broccoli buds are green and harvested until they develop yellow flowers. Once the flowers open, broccoli is not eaten. The best varieties and hybrids of broccoli:
Subspecies of cabbage. Kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts and Beijing sprouts
Kohlrabi is a kind of cabbage - a stalk. The modified stem is used for food. It, like cabbage forks, is above the ground, but its taste is most similar to young juicy turnips or radishes. The content of vitamin C is superior to other types of cabbage and more than in lemon. The color of the stem fruit can be white or red.
It ripens in less than two months, so you can sow in small batches so that the stem crop does not have time to become coarse and fibrous. You can sow directly into the ground. When stored for long-term storage, it retains its beneficial properties well.
The best varieties:
- Deli red
- Violet
- Gusto
- Giant
- Vienna white
Brussels sprouts are a subspecies of garden cabbage. There are many miniature stalks located on the stalk of the stem. Contains a lot of phosphorus and has a long ripening period. If you plant Brussels sprouts in April, then their harvest can be harvested in October; there are varieties that ripen only in December - January, so they are not suitable for the middle zone.
The disadvantage of this type of cabbage is the tendency to form arrows, the advantage is a pleasant nutty taste when boiled. Kocheski Brussels Cabbages can be either white or red. The best varieties and hybrids are:
- Ruby, red variety, satisfactory yield and taste
- Diamond F 1, early variety, resistant to arrows
- Hercules, late variety
Cabbage
Many botanists classify Chinese cabbage as a subspecies of the Turnip genus. The thin and folded leaves of Chinese cabbage form a loose head. In Asian countries, Korea, and China, many salads and snacks are prepared from Chinese cabbage. In Korea, its heads of cabbage are fermented whole, topped with pepper, carrots and garlic. In addition, it is added to the filling of national steam pies.
Another subspecies - Chinese cabbage, has thick petioles, which are usually eaten; it does not form a head of cabbage at all. In order to appreciate this or that variety of cabbage, it is worth planting them all in small quantities, especially since they all have similar agricultural techniques.
Video about the benefits of broccoli:
